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| Tailor season on Fraser. Pic: Cody Doucette, Matador Network |
These days on Fraser, hundreds of fisher folk flock to
Fraser hoping to catch Tailor (size limit is 35cm and there is a species’ limit
of 20) and Jewfish (Protonibea diacanthus)
off the eastern beach.
Whilst it is
still early days in the season, the Tailor have been keeping out wide to feed on
huge schools of bait fish, but we expect them to head inshore as the
north-westerlies blow. South of Eurong,
they’ve been landing some big Jewies in the gutters near First Creek.
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| A Dugong in the Great Sandy Strait Pic: The Gympie Times |
Back to the western side, one species that we have welcomed back to our shores with open arms is the Dugong (Dugong dugon - pictured right). These large herbivorous mammals with paddle-like forelimbs and a broad, horizontally flattened tail are on the endangered species list.
Dugongs are closely related to the extinct
Sea Cow (Hydrodamalis gigas) and feast
on seagrass meadows - there are seven seagrass species in the The Great Sandy Strait (which separates Fraser Island from Hervey Bay on the mainland) and they
are very sensitive to human influence.
Dugong numbers declined locally after muddy waters from the 2011 Queensland floods impacted their food supply by cutting sunlight to the seagrass pastures. Although Dugong population sizes are hard to determine, due to the large scale movements along the coastline, scientific evidence suggests a long-term decline.
Dugong are generally solitary or they travel in pairs or small groups – so passengers aboard the Kingfisher Bay Ferry to River Heads were thrilled to see three surface to catch a breath beside the boat late last month.
Dugong numbers declined locally after muddy waters from the 2011 Queensland floods impacted their food supply by cutting sunlight to the seagrass pastures. Although Dugong population sizes are hard to determine, due to the large scale movements along the coastline, scientific evidence suggests a long-term decline.
Dugong are generally solitary or they travel in pairs or small groups – so passengers aboard the Kingfisher Bay Ferry to River Heads were thrilled to see three surface to catch a breath beside the boat late last month.
At this time of year, the Fraser Island Creeper (Tecomanthe hillii) is also in full bloom
around our Awinya hotel wing and main pool areas at the resort. If you’re visiting us, keep an eye out for clusters
of bright pink tubular flowers, which create bright splashes of colour among
the foliage of the trees they climb up. The creeper is only found in a few
small isolated areas of eastern Australia, so the flowers are a real treat
for visitors from both Australia and overseas. Rangers are more than happy to point them out
on our Ranger-guided walks in and around the resort.
In last month’s blog we mentioned that White-cheeked
Honeyeaters (Phylidonyris nigra) were
nesting around the resort. This month, their super cute fledglings are out of the nest
and begging for food from their parents. Our resident White-bellied
Sea Eagles (Haliaeetus leucogaster) have
also been putting on a show during our Ranger-guided canoe paddles - you can imagine our excitement when we saw two
eagles fighting in mid air, locking talons and spiralling out of control!
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| A Dingo in repose at Eli Creek. Pic: Troy Geltch, Air Fraser Island |
Winter time in our neck of the woods also marks the time
that female dingoes give birth and consequently protect their young and their
territory. Interestingly, an American Bear Researcher (Dr Hank Harlow
from the University of Wyoming) recently told ABC News that the dingo management practices on Fraser Island are similar to what is used in the Yellowstone National Park for Grizzly Bears.
Dr Harlow says that unlike bears, convincing people to stay
away from dingoes can be difficult. He says that you can tell a Grizzly Bear
has mischief on his mind whilst people thought that because dingoes looked like
pets, there was no danger.
A recent incident on Fraser (and continuous posts of human/dingo selfies on social media) serves as a reminder that dingoes most definitely
aren’t pets and there is a need to follow the 'DINGO SAFETY' rules when out and
about in The Great Sandy National Park. Queensland
Parks and Wildlife currently imposes hefty fines on visitors who feed these animals and
encourage socialisation with humans. Resorts, like Kingfisher Bay and Eurong Beach are surrounded by fences to keep the dingoes from being loved too much by the general public.
Fraser’s totally wild and that's why we love it. Who knows what we’ll
see next month - catch you then.
